For the Sake of His Friends
by Confessions of a Short Girl
Summary: The sea was calling him. Each moment he stayed on Middle-Earth caused him physical pain, but he would not leave. He would stay for the sake of his friends.


**Thanks to fudgemonkey878 for being my beta**

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><p>The sea was calling him.<p>

His heart yearned for him to set sail and join his brothers and sisters that had already set sail. The elves were a dying race, which was why so many had left. They all knew in their hearts that the elves rule was over; it was time for men to rule Middle-Earth.

And yet, Legolas did not want to set sail and leave.

Even though he could feel the wind blowing, hear it whistling and hear the singing gulls. Smell the salt and brine, see his family standing on the shore waving and beckoning him to come thither to them. Despite all this he resisted the urge to leave for the Undying Lands and stayed in Middle-Earth.

He did this al for the sake of his friends. For Aragorn, Gimli, Merry, Pippin, Sam, Eowyn, Faramir, Arwen; he stayed for them. If any of them were to leave and depart from this life, he would despair. He would not force that upon his friends if he had the choice not to.

They would all depart before him, and only then would he embrace the sea's call. Only then.

~xXx~

"What is your final count elf?" Gimli's gruff voice sounded.

Legolas smirked proudly. "I myself slew fifty-three orcs."

"Blast you elf!" Gimli roared angrily shaking his fist at Legolas.

"What was your final count Gimli?" Legolas ventured to ask.

"Forty-three." was the terse reply given. "It should have been fifty seven though!"

"Why would that be Gimli?" Mirth was clear in his eyes as he looked at Gimli's fuming face.

"You know darn well why elf!" The dwarf grumbled angrily, swinging his axe into the dead body of an orc. Blood flew splattering Legolas' tunic making him wrinkle his nose in disgust; he hated orcs blood. "You stole nine of my kills!"

"And how did I do that Gimli?" Legolas asked in an innocent voice, the smirk on his face saying that he already knew how though.

"You shot arrows at orcs that I was about to kill!" Gimli held up nine stubby fingers. "You shot nine of them elf! Nine!"

"You two never stop arguing do you?" Eomer casually observed as he wiped his sword clean of blood.

"No they don't Eomer." Aragorn said with humour in his voice. "Some would wonder if they are even friends with the amount of time they send arguing."

"Friends?" Gimli spluttered. "I am not friends with this pointy eared bastard of an elf."

"I'll have you know dwarf that my mother gave birth to me when she and my father were wed." Legolas responded coldly.

"You've done it now Gimli." Aragorn muttered. "You know how proud Legolas is of his heritage.

Gimli opened his mouth to make another remark, but Eomer hastily said, "Peace Gimli, Legolas, let us go back to Edoras where we shall have a merry feast in celebration of our victory here."

They rode off towards Edoras in silence, neither Gimli nor Legolas speaking. Gimli was fidgeting and Legolas waited, knowing that he was having an inner battle with himself on whether or not to apologize to him.

This manner continued with Gimli fidgeting and Legolas waiting patiently for a few minutes before Gimli burst out, "That last comment of mine was uncalled for. I apologize Legolas."

Legolas nodded before responding, "I accept your apology Gimli." He paused for a second before continuing. "Those orcs were yours. You were about to deal the killing blow before I interfered. I apologize."

"That's right elf." Gimli mumbled. "They were mine before you went and shot them. He looked at Legolas. "I accept your apology."

Aragorn looked at the two with raised eyebrows. In the fifteen years that Legolas and Gimli had been friends he had not once ever heard the two apologize to each other. He couldn't help but think of how much the two of them had changed in fifteen years.

~xXx~

It had been twenty-five years since they had first set out to destroy the One Ring. Aragorn was now over one hundred years old and yet he still appeared as if he were only in his thirties.

"You're going to have a long reign as king Aragorn." Legolas commented at the celebration of Aragorn's one hundred and twelfth anniversary of his date of birth.

"You never know Legolas." Aragorn remarked over his pint. "I could very well die next year at the hands of a rare disease, or next month from a battle, I could very well die tonight from someone assassinating me as I sleep."

"Such morbid thoughts to be thinking of on the anniversary of your date of birth."

Aragorn turned around to see his wife Arwen. He smirked at her before giving a bow. "My apologies dear wife."

Holding onto his arm Arwen said playfully, "You are forgiven, but only if you give me a kiss."

Aragorn planted a light kiss upon his wife's lips. Anyone who looked at Aragorn and Arwen could see that the two of them were in love. When Arwen and Aragorn were first married there had been talk that Arwen was only using him since he was the King of Gondor that she was only pretending to love him because he held power. All claims and worries like that were laid to rest when they watched the two of them interact.

Legolas could not help but feel jealousy at this.

All of his friends had found suitable wives. Aragorn married Arwen at the first chance he got. Faramir had married Eowyn. Sam had married a hobbit by the name of Rosie. Merry and Pippin had also found hobbits to marry. Even Gimli had found himself a dawrven woman to marry.

Aragorn saw Legolas' longing look as he looked upon him and Arwen. "You need to find yourself a wife Legolas." He said bluntly.

Legolas was shocked, his mouth gaping open like a fish. Never had he heard Aragorn speak so bluntly about the subject of him not having a wife. That was always Gimli telling him bluntly time and time again to find himself a wife and have plenty of elven or half elven children.

"I have no desire for a wife at this moment in time." Legolas responded quietly.

"Legolas." Aragorn said softly. "We can all see how you wish to have a wife of your own." Legolas opened his mouth to protest but Aragorn held up a hand and continued speaking. "Do not try to deny it Legolas. We all see your looks of longing when we are with our wives or children. Why do you not settle down with a wife of your own?"

"Now if not the time to talk about me _mellon_." Legolas said evading the question. "Today is the anniversary of your birth; we should not talk about me."

Aragorn opened his mouth to protest but Arwen squeezed his arm and shook her head. Reluctantly Aragorn let the subject drop and Legolas gave Arwen a grateful look which she returned with a nod. Legolas did not want to burden his friend by telling him how there were less than one hundred elves left on Middle-Earth and almost none of them were women who were not wed already. The women had been the first to leave on the boats to The Undying Lands, only the men and their wives remained to fight battles. If that were not enough Legolas had no desire to marry a human, or woman of any other race, knowing that, should they have children, he would outlast both his wife and his children and see them die, or leave them to depart for The Undying Lands when his friends departed from this life.

He did not want to burden Aragorn with the troubles of his elven life.

~xXx~

"It is not often that an elf visits the Shire." A hobbit said to Legolas as he came in on his horse. "What brings you to the Shire Master elf?"

_Master elf. _Legolas mused to himself. He had not been called that in quite some time. "I am here to visit some dear friends of mine."

"Friends?" The hobbits bushy eyebrows rose towards the sky. "I did not know we had any elves here in the Shire,"

Legolas let out a laugh before he said with a smile, "No my friends are hobbits. Meriadoc Brandybuckk, Peregrin Took, and Samwise Gamgee." _And Frodo Baggins. _He thought sadly to himself. Frodo, he would see him when he answered the sea's call, but that would not be for some time as his mortal friends were still alive, not to mention Gimli who has the life span of a dwarf and Aragorn being blessed with long life. No, he would not be seeing Frodo for quite some time now.

"Merry, Pippin, and Sam?" The hobbit man said in disbelief. "Oh my." he muttered when he saw Legolas nod his head. "They weren't lying when they said they were friends with an elf."

"No they weren't." Legolas said kindly. "Would you be able to point me in the direction of their houses?" The hobbit pointed dumbly towards the east and Legolas urged his horse in that direction. He could feel the hobbit's stares on his back and he sat up straighter. He was Legolas son of Thranduil, now King of the Mirkwood elves, one of the last elves left in Middle-Earth. He sat proudly as he searched for Merry, Pippin, and Sam.

He found Sam tending to a garden outside what he presumed was his house. He smiled as Sam looked up and said in disbelief, "It can't be, Legolas?"

Legolas dismounted off of his horse and embraces Sam. Yes Sam, it's me."

"Wow." Sam said in an awed voice. "You haven't aged a day since I last saw you Mr. Legolas."

Legolas couldn't help but smile hearing Sam say that. Thirty-two years and Sam still seemed to have the habit of addressing people as Mr. or Mrs. He fondly recalled Sam calling out to Frodo saying Mr. Frodo He smiled as he thought of that. "I wish I could say the same for you Sam, it seems that time has claimed you." How true it was. While thirty-two years ago Sam's hair had been brown as the tilled earth, it was not streaked with white and gray and his face had aged showing wrinkles here and there.

"Not all of us have the gift of immortality Mr. Legolas." Sam chuckled running a hand through his greying hair.

Legolas laughed along with him, all the while thinking of how immortality was not a gift but a curse. "It's good to see you again Sam." Legolas said quietly. "Where are Merry and Pippin?"

Sam's face fell at the mention of their names and Legolas' blood ran cold. "There was," Sam took a deep breath. "There was a disease that swept through the Shire eight years ago." He gave a shudder remembering. "It was horrible Mr. Legolas. People moaning and at least two funerals a week. Merry and Pip...it got them." Tears welled in both of their eyes. "Pip left first, and then Merry a few months later. We, we buried them by the river. They always loved playing and relaxing by the river even when they were small."

Legolas' heart broke in two at the news. Merry and Pippin, the two always guaranteed to bring a smile to everyone's faces with their antics. Merry and Pippin, the ones to rouse the Ents and destroy Isengard. They were so young, too young to die.

"Fate is cruel." Legolas whispered. "Would you be able to show me their graves Sam?" The word graves stuck in his throat. It should never have been mentioned in a conversation about Merry and Pippin.

Sam nodded his head and the two of them set out towards the river. They were simple graves. Wooden crosses with their names written on them. Wild flowers grew around their crosses and more tears flowed freely from Legolas' blue eyes at the sight of their names written on the crosses.

More tears sprang from his eyes as he looked at the river. The river, it must lead to the sea that was calling him. As he grieved and mourned for his friends that had died he could not help but think that he was two people closer to answering the call of the sea and going home.

~xXx~

"Legolas!" A yell came from across the room. "I challenge you to another drinking contest!"

The elf turned around and found Gimli pointing at him. He smirked and said. "Have you not learned your lesson yet Gimli? How many drinking contests have we had that I have lost?"

"Today is the day that I will beat you!" The dwarf roared turning red in the face. "Now get over here pointy ears!"

Legolas' ears twitched at the name but proceeded towards Gimli. "Same rules as usual?" Gimli nodded and the drinking contest began.

A crowd gathered as they had all heard about the legendary drinking contests between Gimli the dwarf and Legolas the elf. Eomer acted as the bartender as per usual, his hair now frosted over with white it being forty-one years since the final battle against Sauron. He gave each man pint and watched them down them quickly. His eyebrows rose as he saw that Gimli's ale tolerance had, yet again, increased as they were at fifty pints and neither showed any signs of stopping. By the sixtieth pint though Gimli was beginning to sway, and at the sixty-ninth he passed out drunk.

"That's his best record so far." Eomer observed. He turned to0 Legolas and asked with a teasing smile, "Feel anything Legolas? Any tingling in your fingers?"

To his surprise Legolas gave a nod. "Yes, my fingers are tingling and my head is feeling odd, cloudy even."

Eomer's eyes widened and he called out, "Aragorn! Aragorn get over here, you're not going to believe this!"

"Did Gimli win?" Aragorn asked in disbelief as he weaved through the crowd.

Eomer shook his head. "No, but our dear elf here is starting to feel the effects of ale though."

Shocked Aragorn turned to Legolas asking, "Is it true?"

Legolas gave a nod. "I think so. My fingers are tingling." Aragorn gave a snort at that. "And my head is feeling cloudy. I had already been drinking before Gimli proposed another drinking contest."

Aragorn looked at the table filled with mugs and gasped. "How many pints did they have?"

"A new record of sixty-nine." Eomer replied in disbelief. He couldn't believe that the two of them had drunk sixty-nine pints and the elf was only beginning to feel the effects of ale.

Aragorn had a thoughtful look in his eyes before he asked Legolas, "Why haven't you married yet Legolas?"

"Why are you asking him this Aragorn?" Eomer asked confused. "You know as well as I do that he stops talking whenever anyone asks him this question."

"I know Eomer." Aragorn whispered to his friend. "But after over seventy pints of ale I'm sure his tongue must have loosened somewhat."

Legolas hesitated a moment before saying with cloudy blue eyes, "I have no desire to marry a woman with the knowledge that I will either live and see her death and the death of our children, or the knowledge that someday I will leave her to answer the sea that has been calling me all these years."

"The sea has been calling you?" Aragorn asked sharply.

Legolas' eyes widened as he realized what he had just said and he shut his mouth refusing to speak anymore on the matter.

Legolas had never cursed all more in that moment.

~xXx~

"Legolas, why haven't you left yet?"

Legolas turned around to see Aragorn looking at him with concern. Legolas finished laying flowers on the graves of Eowyn and Faramir. He could still see them in his mind's eyes slowly aging until time claimed them as her own and stole their souls away from Middle-Earth, the same had happened with Eomer and Legolas could not help but think that the life of a man was short-lived. "What do you mean Aragorn?"

Time had started to lay its claim upon Aragorn as well. Being one of the Dunedain he looked only as if he were fifty even though he had been ruling Gondor for eight-one years now and he was well into his one hundred and sixtieth year. Legolas had known that Aragorn would live a long life, but he had not expected this long.

Blue eyes locked onto gray and in that moment Legolas knew exactly what Aragorn was talking about, but he refused to acknowledge it. Silence dragged on as neither man said anything, until Aragorn said firmly, "Legolas, why are you still here on Middle-Earth? Why have you not set sail for the Undying Lands like the rest of your kin has before you?"

Legolas' jaw squared and his posture became rigid. "I have not felt the call of the sea yet and therefore have or reason to leave Middle-Earth."

Aragorn stared at Legolas, not believing a word that he spoke. "You told me forty years ago that the sea was calling you Legolas and it had been for years." Legolas' eyes hardened as he remembered that night and his own foolishness and stupidity. "Tell me the truth Legolas: why have you not left Middle-Earth?"

Legolas cast his eyes to the ground, studying the cracks in the stone as he spoke. "I do not wish to burden you with my decision Aragorn."

"Legolas!" The King of Gondor yelled sharply making Legolas flinch. "I am your friend." Anger rand in every syllabyle as he spoke. "It will not be burdening me. I am asking you because I want to understand. Tell me the truth. Why. Have. You. Not. Left. Middle-Earth?"

"I'm sorry Aragorn." Legolas said softly, his heart breaking as he spoke. "But I cannot tell you." Aragorn's face contorted with sadness and despair as he registered Legolas' words. Legolas averted his eyes in shame for causing his brother such pain and sorrow.

"I am sorry too." Aragorn spoke in a hard voice. "I am sorry that after being your friend and brother for over one hundred years you do not trust me enough to confide in me." Aragorn walked away briskly and Legolas the composed elven King collapsed onto the ground and as his body was wracked with great heaving sobs despaired.

~xXx~

Gimli died just shy of his two hundred and sixty-second anniversary of his date of birth. It had been after a battle where the two of them were announcing their kill count when Gimli suddenly shoved Legolas to the ground and was pierced with an orc sword. Legolas remembered seeing his brother fall to the ground dying and in anger killing the orc that had slain his brother. Gimli had won their competition that day. Legolas how slain forty-two orcs while Gimli had slain forty-three; he would forever be the winner of their competition.

Legolas watched as they lowered his brother's body into the casket of stone and winced when they lowered the stone lid and encased his brother forever in stone; It was final now, Gimli had died and Legolas would never see him again. Never again would they have playful arguments about something meaningless, or have a drinking contest where Legolas was destined to win and Gimli was destined to make a fool of himself, and never again would they have competitions to see who could slay the most goblins or orcs. All of that was gone.

He felt a hand clasp him on his shoulder and started shaking uncontrollably. The siren that was the sea was calling him even more. With each death the call intensified and now it caused him physical pain to remain on Middle-earth. Each breath he drew he could smell the sea and every moment he felt the wind caressing his skin, telling him to come forth. It was maddening.

"Legolas."

One word, one word was all Aragorn said and Legolas broke down. Aragorn embraced him and cried his own tears as Legolas soaked the front of his tunic with his mourning. Aragorn did not care though; his brother had died and is other brother needed his comfort as he needs his. The two of them held each other as they grieved over the loss of their dawrven brother Gimli.

~xXx~

"Legolas, it's been forty years since that day in front of Eowyn and Faramir's graves. I am old now, older than two hundred years and I can feel death looking over my shoulder. My time to leave this world is drawing nigh." Legolas shivered at the thought of his last brother departing this life and him being the only one from the Fellowship remaining, but he could not help but feel elation at the thought of finally being able to answer that siren called the sea and set sail for the Undying Lands.

"Must we speak of this Aragorn?" Legolas begged. "I do not wish to talk of your death, not after the loss of everyone else.

"Yes Legolas." Aragorn replied stubbornly. "Our friends and brother have died as has Arwen." Aragorn's voice softened as he spoke her name and tears filled his eyes. "For forty years you have avoided my question of why you have not left Middle-earth yet."

"It's as I told you forty years ago Estel," Legolas lied, "I have not felt the call of the sea and therefore have no need to leave Middle-Earth."

"Do not lie to me Legolas." Aragorn said in a soft voice, anger gone; only replaced with sadness. "Eight-three years ago you told me that you had been feeling the call of the sea." He looked Legolas in the eyes. "Eighty-three years."

"Has it been that long?" Legolas whispered.

"Aragorn nodded sadly. "Eighty-three years ago I didn't get an answer from you, the same as forty years ago. Now I am demanding that you give me an answer Legolas."

Legolas spoke softly. "You do not need to be bur-"

"Do not give me the same answer that you did forty years ago Legolas!" Aragorn roared with anger. Legolas shivered from the look on Aragorn's face. His hair may now be completely white and gray and his face may have been filled with wrinkles, but when Legolas looked at Aragorn he did not see a man over two hundred years old. He saw the ranger from the north that set out to protect a small hobbit on his impossible quest. Legolas saw the man who defended Helm's Deep with all he had and the man that commanded the army of the dead. The man that gave everything he had not expecting anything in return as he fought against Sauron with his every breath.

He saw the King of Gondor.

"Legolas." Aragorn whispered in a broken voice. "Please tell me _toror'_."

Legolas' breath hitched at Aragorn's words, at Aragorn calling Legolas brother in Legolas' native tongue.

Legolas tried and failed to choke back the tears that were forming in his eyes.

Aragorn was demanding an answer, and Aragorn deserved to know. Almost everyone that Aragorn cared about had departed this life. All that Aragorn had left was Legolas and all that Legolas had left was Aragorn.

Legolas took a deep breath and told Aragorn what he had kept inside himself for one hundred and twenty-one years. "The sea began to call for me three years after our quest to destroy the One Ring ended."

"Three years?" Aragorn whispered. Why Legolas nodded he only whispered despairingly, "Oh Legolas, why?"

"For you." Legolas said simply. "For you and Gimli, Merry and Pippin, Sam and Eomer, Faramir, and Eowyn, and for Arwen."

"For us?" Aragorn eyes were shining with tears that were cascading down his face as he realized the great sacrifice his brother had made for him.

"If, if any of you had left me in those three years before the sea called for me, I would have been heartbroken, I would have despaired. I would have been broken beyond repair. Especially if it had been anyone from the Fellowship. The Fellowship was closer to my own heart than my kin was, to me you were more than friends and brothers, you were the very kin that had been stolen from me and placed in different races because fate is cruel." Legolas took a deep breath and avoided Aragorn's gaze as he bore what had lain in his heart all those decades. "We had all tasted what it would be like to lose a brother when we thought that Frodo had died on Mount Doom. I did not wish for any of you to feel that feeling again by my departure, so I ignored the call and stayed here to not cause you pain."

Aragorn pulled him in an embrace all the while whispering, "You fool, you foolish elf." Aragorn was there for Legolas to cry on as he realised how long he had been keeping this to himself, how long he had been resisting the call and how long he had been in pain. Even now he could hear the ocean and see it in his mind.

"Legolas, go now." His eyes widened as he realised what Aragorn said. "Go home to the undying lands Legolas, you deserve to."

Legolas shook his head mutely. "No, I will not abandon you to be by yourself."

"I will not be by myself Legolas, I have my children, and my grandchildren, and my great-grandchildren." Aragorn reasoned, but Legolas would hear none of it.

"It is not the same and you know it Aragorn. Your family all have lives of their own, lives that no longer include you as much as you would wish them to. I will not abandon you Aragorn."

"But you will let yourself be alone and bear the weight of this burden alone!" Aragorn yelled his eyes livid.

"Yes." Legolas replied without hesitation. "Because when you depart I will be able to answer the call and set sail for the Undying lands and join my kin. If I were to leave you though, you would be all alone now with no one to fill the loneliness." He looked at Aragorn the King of Gondor with determined blue eyes. "I will not abandon you to that fate Aragorn."

"Then I will kill myself here and now so that you may be free." Aragorn pulled one of the daggers from his belt.

"No!" Legolas yelled. "You cannot and will not die for my sake Aragorn!" He forcibly took the dagger from Aragorn's old gnarled hands and threw it across the room. "You have your subjects to think about! What would they do if they heard that their noble king killed himself for the sake of an elf?"

"An elf who is his _toror'_!" Aragorn angrily yelled. "An elf who has been denying his call home for one hundred and twenty-one years! An elf that has been alone as the last of his kind for thirty-nine years! I could care less what my subjects would say and do Legolas." Aragorn said coldly. "You are my friend, and you have been suffering for me for far too long."

"I will not be the cause of your death though Aragorn." Legolas said softly. "If I am the cause of your death then I will not be able to forgive myself. I will not set sail for the Undying Lands. I will stay here on Middle-earth as punishment for killing my brother. I would stay until I am killed in battle or until the world itself falls apart."

"Stop being a fool Legolas." Aragorn said crying tears for his brother. "You have suffered enough; do not suffer more for my sake."

"I am not leaving you alone Aragorn and that is final." Legolas said stubbornly. He would not move on this.

"You are a fool." Aragorn whispered despaired.

"It's as you said all those years ago at your party when you told me to get a wife Aragorn. You could die at anytime." He smiled a bittersweet smile. "Do not die for my sake though Aragorn or I will never forgive myself."

Aragorn gave a saddened sigh. "You are a stubborn fool."

~xXx~

It was eighteen years before Aragorn died. He died peacefully in his sleep, that only kind of death that Legolas had wished for his friend.

Each year Aragorn would try to persuade Legolas to forget about him, to leave Middle-earth and answer the sea. Each year Legolas refused.

Legolas cried and grieved and mourned at Aragorn's funeral as he never had before. There was no one to comfort him this time at the passing of his brother. The Gondorians gave him a wide berth, not wanting to associate with the last elf to roam Middle-Earth.

Aragon's son Eldarion came and clasped Legolas on the shoulder just as his father had done all those years ago at Gimli's funeral. "My father was proud to have you as a friend. When I was a small child he would put me to sleep with tales of his friends. Tales of an elf, a dwarf, and four hobbits saying every night that he could never have asked for better friends." Eldarion looked Legolas in the eye and Legolas was struck with how much Eldarion looked like Aragorn during their time together on the quest to destroy the One Ring. "My father told me why you have stayed here for so long when the elves have long departed. Go now Legolas son of Thranduil, King of the Mirkwood elves, and last elf to roam Middle-Earth. Answer the sea, be at peace, and go to the Undying Lands.

Those words sent relief through Legolas and he let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. He now knew that if no one told him that it was alright for him to leave Middle-Earth that he never would have left. He would have stayed tormenting himself for fear that if he left it would desecrate his family's memories. "Thank you." He exhaled with relief.

His eyes were closed and he could hear the sea's roar, and the singing gulls, and the voices of his kin telling him, "Come Legolas, come thither to us." He could smell the salt, the brine, the freedom. The wind was caressing his skin, welcoming him to the Undying Lands, and the sea was spraying his face. And the shore, he could see the shore! There his kin were waving, welcoming him, smiling for they had been waiting for so long. And on the shore with his kin the elves, they were all there. Gandalf, Frodo, Sam, Merry, Pippin, Gimli, Eowyn, Faramir, Eomer, and Aragorn. His best friend and brother, he was waiting for him on the shore.

Legolas opened his eyes and walked away. There was hope in his eyes that had not been there for over a century and he walked with a purpose in his step. He was relaxed, he was at peace.

He was finally going home.

~xXx~


End file.
